1. October 2018. Having strolled down Old Street and stopped by The Tea Academy, next up was a look at the village Post Office where absolutely nothing was happening, not even a whiff of human activity. Apparently it is still operational and my friend assured me that if I wanted to send a letter home, this was the place. In the end I made do with a photograph.

2. October 2018. The higher we climbed the quieter the cobbled streets became until we reached an almost empty stretch of wooden storefronts. There was an old dude smoking from some kind of homemade pipe, a dog that scampered past and a caged bird squawking away between the stalls. This, my friends, is authentic China!

3. October 2018. It isn’t long before the stores peter out altogether and all that’s left to do is climb the village steps for fine countryside views across Cangnan County.

4. October 2018. It was late afternoon as we made our way up and indeed those views did not disappoint. Look out for the giant rock to the side of the path that holds a fluttering Chinese fag.

5. October 2018. Fudewan Ancient Village is a great little hidden corner of Zhejiang Province. Coming here by public transport would be a big challenge, with unreliable bus times and zero English. Your best bet is to take the train to Cangnan Railway Station and grab a taxi from there. It’s about an hour’s drive so expect to pay around 100RMB per leg. If like me you’re going with a Chinese friend it’s oh so simple and maybe you can reward them with dinner!

Want to discover more of this fascinating region of China? Check out my many travel reports from across Zhejiang Province.

Want to search further afield? No problem, I’ve penned stacks of My 5s from all over China!